Dive Brief:
- Zaxbys will open its first Maryland restaurant next year in Cambridge, a city on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, with two more to follow in Easton and West Ocean City/Berlin, the brand said Friday.
- The three franchised Eastern Shore locations will be built by a family of local real estate developers: Curtis Snyder, Teresa Snyder and Thomas Mitchell.
- Zaxbys has grown modestly over in recent years, according to its Franchise Disclosure Document, which shows the chain opened a net of 33 restaurants between 2021 and the end of 2023, reaching a total of 941 locations.
Dive Insight:
The new units will be located along U.S. Route 50, which serves as the major arterial road between Baltimore, Washington, D.C. and Ocean City, Maryland.
According to the press release, the Snyders decided to diversify their real estate holdings and were impressed by Zaxbys after encountering the brand during a trip to South Carolina. The franchisees plan further units in Maryland, with an eye on Salisbury, another city on the Eastern Shore.
Zaxbys’ unit economics may make it attractive to prospective franchisees compared to other chicken chains. According to the franchise disclosure document, the average gross revenue of a Zaxbys unit is about $2.7 million, compared to $1.4 million at KFC units and about $1.9 million at Popeyes.
Zaxbys unit volume also grew from $2.5 million in 2021 to $2.7 million in 2023, a roughly 7% increase.
Chicken chains, especially regional chains and emerging brands, have emerged as one of the more dynamic sectors of the restaurant industry post-COVID. Dave’s Hot Chicken has seen explosive domestic growth and is planning to open units in the U.K. and Ireland. Bojangles is expanding to Los Angeles. And Raising Cane’s has recently achieved enough national prominence that it was added to Intouch Insight’s prestigious drive-thru study, where it placed second in customer service among 11 QSR brands after segment leader Chick-fil-A.
The surging popularity of chicken as a protein has also pushed McDonald’s to bring the Chicken Big Mac to the U.S. on a limited basis.
Zaxbys is looking to capitalize on this trend and recently created an e-commerce division to help its digital channels grow. The brand has also looked to menu promotions to help drive sales, bringing back its Asian Zensation Zalad for a limited time this month and launching a 9-count chicken taco pack timed to the college football season.
